I’ve been watching the campaign of the New Zealand Ministry of Health to vaccinate tens of thousands of children in the North against meningococcal C. The campaign is aided and abetted by all the newspapers of the area with headline after headline creating fear in parents and hence the perceived need to have their children immunized. I feel I have to say something.

Twice in my life I’ve contracted spinal meningitis, once at age 4 and again at 28. I was fortunate to survive the second time after ending up in a coma in an isolated Norwegian town. Both times the disease followed vaccinations. Is this a coincidence?

If we believe the press, New Zealand has had an epidemic of spinal meningitis since 1991. That’s the very year the MMR vaccine was introduced here. Is this a coincidence?

There’s a Canadian doctor causing ripples if not tidal waves in the ocean of mainstream medicine today. He claims every vaccine causes a tiny stroke in the person receiving it. He says the effects of these vaccine-induced strokes are cumulative. Dr. Andrew Moulden has traced the clotting blood, common in the metabolism after vaccination, to brain damage in many children.

The medical community, supported by the pharmaceutical companies that make untold billions from vaccines, claims vaccinations have eradicated all sorts of killer diseases from the earth. Yet study after independent study show that the arrival of the vaccine followed the decline of the disease. The same studies and others demonstrate conclusively that cleanliness, hygiene and improved living conditions actually eliminated the diseases. London experienced seven major cholera outbreaks in the 1800s at a time when the inhabitants of that city lived in filth and squalor. Cholera is still found today in places with similar filthy living conditions. Polio too is a water-borne disease and it disappeared in America when chlorinated water filtration plants were introduced in the early 1960s.

Do you remember the hype of the 2009 Swine Flu? There was a time when it was being considered to vaccinate every man, woman and child in America against this disease. When NY State instituted compulsory swine flu vaccinations for health care workers did these same workers say, “Thank you?” No, they rose up in unison and marched at the state capital in Albany in protest. If they felt so strongly about being immunized how should the general public feel? More on that here: http://www.thenewamerican.com/index.php/usnews/health-care/2081-swine-flu-seizures

In 2009 the pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. (the very company providing the current vaccine) and a subsidiary agreed to pay a record US $2.3 billion penalty for illegally promoting certain of their drugs.

Please note that the vaccine contains aluminium phosphate, a known neurotoxin. Note also that what is termed “effectiveness” is really the effectiveness of the vaccine to produce antibodies in those who have been given the vaccine. The data sheet mentions that the vaccine has not been tested for “protective efficacy”, which is unrelated to how effective the vaccine is in producing antibodies. In other words the vaccine has not been tested as to its ability to prevent the disease.

Our two daughters, now age 19 and 16, have never been vaccinated. They have also never had to visit a doctor nor has either of them ever taken so much as an aspirin. Granted, they’ve each had the occasional cold or flu. But nothing that rest, plenty of fluids and natural remedies wouldn’t heal. Our family is only one of many in the Far North that have done independent research and decided not to vaccinate. The children in these families are unquestionably healthy. Likewise there are many children in our area who have suffered irreparable damage from vaccines with symptoms ranging from chronic fatigue to autism and death.

In the deliberate manufactured hype of today I urge you to use common sense and avoid having your precious children subjected to any dangerous vaccinations. And remember, as Dr. Moulden says, they’re all dangerous to some degree. One recent article in the Advocate stated that “up to 15 per cent of people carry the bacteria that cause meningococcal disease in their nose and throat. The national deputy director of public health, Darren Hunt, stated: “In some people, for reasons we don’t fully understand, this bacteria go on to cause disease . . .” Really! Each of us has an immune system designed to protect us from illness. This immune system works optimally when supported by a healthy diet comprised of mostly organic, fresh local produce. The immune system is compromised by unnatural threats such as vaccinations, additives in processed foods, the incredible amounts of sugar contained in fizzy drinks and the chemical sprays used in agriculture (such as is used in the orchard right beside Taipa Area School.)

“We do not need to vaccinate for all the pathogens on earth, since all pathogens are inducing disease and death and disability via a singular common set of mechanism. It is these mechanism that need to be addressed on an as needed basis. This is now do-able. It always was. Louis Pasteur’s germ theory was just that – a theory. His contemporaries, Dr. Antoine Beachamp and Dr. Rudolph Virchow were closer to the truth as to the cause of disease. Remarkably, this means that much of what we are doing in western medicine is wrong – we have been practicing medicine in a state of confusing cause and effect and causing more harm, globally, than good…for over 200 years!”

“In Search of Simplicity is a unique and awe-inspiring way to re-visit and even answer some of the gnawing questions we all intrinsically have about the meaning of life and our true, individual purpose on the planet. I love this book.”

A few weeks back our eighteen-year-old daughter decided to do a controlled experiment. She drank for the first time. She drank to get drunk. That’s the bad news for parents who haven’t had alcohol for decades. The good news is that the next day she felt terrible and vomited. She discovered that alcohol is a poison.

I told this story to a couple of friends. The first told me of how her son used to party with his mates in theU.K.until the night one of them got alcohol poisoning and passed out. The other boys finally decided to get him to a hospital. It was touch and go as his stomach was pumped and he lapsed in and out of consciousness. The doctor on duty in emergency made a point of taking each of the boys individually in to see their very sick friend and gave them each a talking to, away from the few parents who had, by this time, also been alerted. My friend’s son obviously was deeply affected by the experience, to the point where he didn’t touch a drop of alcohol until he was close to thirty, at which point he had the sense to do so in moderation. He has not been drunk since. My hat is off to the doctor who obviously went out of his way to teach these young men a meaningful lesson.

The other friend told me of his ‘controlled experiment’. He and his roommate had a party in their flat during the second term of their first year at university. My friend drank too much and passed out. The next thing he recalls is waking up in a hospital three days later. His parents were by his side. His mother had gone grey overnight. Three years later his eldest sister died in an accident, further traumatising his mother. It was then he decided never to get drunk again. He couldn’t bear the thought of hurting his mother further. There is a lesson in this. Everything we do impinges on the lives of those around us. I respect this friend for his decision to think of those he loves, not just of himself.

I share these stories because I know many of us have drinking and other habits we would love to overcome and don’t quite get to. Below is a link to my personal story with alcohol and why I decided at a young age to stop. There is also a link to an interview I did with a, acknowledged alcoholic who has received much needed support from Alcoholics Anonymous.

Human birth is a blessing. It is surely worth looking after our bodies, not denigrating them with toxins, allowing our souls to shine through, and positively impacting everyone around us.

“In Search of Simplicity is a unique and awe-inspiring way to re-visit and even answer some of the gnawing questions we all intrinsically have about the meaning of life and our true, individual purpose on the planet. I love this book.”

There’s a Dances of Universal Peace song I sometimes sing at the beginning of talks I give for groups. The words are:

Why have you come to earth, why have you come?

Why have you given birth, why have you come?

To love, to serve, and remember.

I’m presently reading a book by the doyen of near-death research, P.M.H. Atwater, titled Near-Death Experiences the rest of the story: What they Teach Us About Living, Dying and Our True Purpose. The book outlines findings the author, now 73, was previously unprepared to report. And these findings are based on nearly four thousand interviews with near-experiencers—adults and children.

There is an example of a mafia hitman who experiences a life review during his near-death experience. The following are the exact words from the book:

“An example of a life review more radical than most is that of a mafia hitman whose life review involved him reliving everything he had ever done, good or bad, as well as the consequences. He also had to live through whatever happened to each person he hurt as if he were them. He felt all of their pain, lived through their circumstances, and faced their grief. He was incapable of hurting another person after that and devoted the rest of his life to serving the poor through various church programs.

There is no prison term, no punishment that can equal the totality of a radical life review. Some accounts cover the entire impact of a person’s existence: everything said, thought, or done since birth, and the effect he or she had on everyone, even passersby, whether met or not, and on the air, soil, plants, water, animals . . . the entire gestalt of one’s life—the result of ever having taken a breath. There are those I have had sessions with who could not even step on a bug after such a review, nor swat a fly.”

The above represents precisely the perspective I have had since the series of near-death and awakening experiences I had earlier in my life. I simply don’t want to hurt another being, step on a worm or crush a mosquito. It is common for me to move worms from the sidewalk to the grass when having an early walk after or during a rain. All life is precious. Each has a place in nature’s mystery. If we could but open our (inner) eyes to the majesty of existence we would see this.

Atwater points out that near-death experiences are far from rare, perhaps touching the lives of 20% of people. And they are far from new. Atwater speculates that Apostle Paul’s life-changing revelation was a near-death experience, so similar was it to the events of many experiencers she has spoken with. Many who have had such experiences as children have gone on to great deeds later in life including Einstein, Abraham Lincoln, Edward de Vere (the 17th Earl of Oxford and believed by many to be the real Shakespeare), Mozart, Winston Churchill, Walter Russell and revered south Indian sage Ramana Maharshi.

I am certainly not suggesting you should actively court a near-death experience. But I would suggest that you learn from these experiences—whether your own or those of others—and adjust your thoughts, words and actions to reflect the interconnectedness of everything and everyone. Satya Sai Baba, once said, and I’m paraphrasing here, that all of life is an opportunity to arrive at death’s door with happy anticipation and a smile on your face. Something to think about.

“In Search of Simplicity is a unique and awe-inspiring way to re-visit and even answer some of the gnawing questions we all intrinsically have about the meaning of life and our true, individual purpose on the planet. I love this book.”

“In Search of Simplicity is a unique and awe-inspiring way to re-visit and even answer some of the gnawing questions we all intrinsically have about the meaning of life and our true, individual purpose on the planet. I love this book.”

I’m not a rugby fan but the Rugby World Cup is creating great community spirit here in the Far North. Tonight, I understand is the opening match between Tonga and the All Blacks. Kaitaia shops were painting it red today in honour of the three teams with red in their flags: Canada, Japan and Tonga. So here’s a photo from the library today of our team painting it red.

The following information arrived in my inbox from AVAAZ. Read it and click on the link if you feel so inclined. I think it is great that politicians are beginning to take such positive action. And someone like Rupert Murdoch with his huge media clout can be bypassed through effective internet action.

Thanks, John

Right now, a major climate fight is blowing up in Australia — the government is about to pass a law that would cut carbon emissions and get polluters to pay. But big businesses, backed by Rupert Murdoch, are trying to kill the bill.

This carbon pricing law is a win-win measure — it will push dirty businesses towards clean production and generate more resources for working families. If it passes, it will spur other major emitters to follow suit and could be the next best hope for our climate. But Murdoch’s megaphone of fear is massive — he owns seventy percent of Australia’s press. If together we can drown out his campaign to crush the bill with messages of hope from across the world, we could help it pass.

This battle is being fought on the Australian air waves now. Sign the urgent petition to back this bold initiative and share it with everyone — when we reach 250,000 signatures, we’ll run inspiring radio ads that deliver our global messages, lay out the benefits of the law and rouse public support:

We are all under threat from climate change — including the droughts and storms that cause forest fires, floods and failed harvests. Australia’s proposal would start to shift its economy to halt it. The measure would make polluting companies pay, encouraging them to become more efficient while funding technologies of the future and increasing support to the most needy. Yet Murdoch — who has a long history of supporting climate denial — has joined with mining companies to spread wild predictions of job losses and economic doom.

Countries like Denmark, Sweden and Costa Rica have already introduced carbon-pricing, spurring innovation and reducing pollution. If we now embolden Australia — the worst rich country per person carbon polluter — to follow their lead, it will generate momentum for other major emitters such as China and the US to follow suit, boosting our chances of a global climate deal next year.

Avaaz members across the world have been strong campaigners on climate change — our actions together have often influenced governments and companies. Right now, Australia’s people and political leaders need our support to face down the profiteers and renew our hope in climate solutions. Let’s remind our Australian friends that they’re not alone in this crucial climate fight:

Politicians and businesses often think short-term, when long-term action is needed. When our people-powered movement counters these tendencies and proposes a clear vision of the future we want, we bring out the best in our leaders. Let’s shore up Australia’s resolve, then approach other governments until we achieve the global climate deal the world needs.